Hot water dispenser brand review: Zojirushi
Zojirushi is a Japanese brand and they make some of the most popular high-end hot water dispensers. Today we’re going to do a deep dive into the products they offer and some of the brand’s pros and cons.
Zojirushi dates back to 1918, but changed its namein 1961. “ZO” means elephant in Japanese, which symbolizes strength, intelligence and familiarity. In 1973 Zojirushi developed it’s first hot water dispenser and innovated the mechanical pump that you see on top of all its products (as opposed to a lever/spigot).
Electric hot water pots are a staple in Japanese kitchens. Japanese people love drinking tea, coffee and soup throughout the day and they find it easier to have ready-made hot water available. It’s a thing there. It’s the land of instant hot water! (and instant soup!).
That’s probably why Zojirushi has some of the most innovative and high-end features on their electric hot water pots compared to brands from other countries.
One feature that stands out is that there are FOUR dfferent temperature options. Why four you ask? Won’t one do? Well, apparantly, different tea requires different temperatures to fully bring out the flavour. Who knew! Delicate teas are best brewed at 160°F, while 175°F is the ideal brewing temperature for green teas. Oolong tea is best brewed at 195°F, and at 208°, the hot water is great for brewing black teas and herbal teas (and hot enough to make coffee, instant noodles or oatmeal and blanch vegetables).
How a Zojirushi hot water dispenser works
Simply fill up the pot with cool tap water, close the lid, and press the temperature you want (208 will do for pretty much everything). Then just press the automatic pump to dispense hot water into your cup OR press “unlock” and then the “dispense” button. It’s honestly that easy! You can also use the delay timer to make sure you have fresh hot water when you wake up. It’s very similar to an electric kettle.
When you’re done, just dump out any leftover hot water (it turns off itself if it senses that the water has run out so there’s no risk of burning) and let air dry, or refill the pot with cool water and repeat the process.
Cool features of Zojirushi hot water dispensers:
Easy to read LCD panel
Delay timer
Swivel base for serving
Wide window water level gague
Dispense water button
Quick temp mode that quickly heats water to without first bringing it to a boil
Café Drip Dispensing allows water to come out of the spout 60% slower, making it suitable for making slow drip coffee
Safety feature of Zojirushi electric kettles
Zojirushi has amazing safety features for both children and seniors (there are a lot of seniors in Japan so the safety features actually appear to be designed for them, but they work just as well for children!). Unfortunately, this makes most models of Zojirushi incompatible for Shabbat, as you have to press the electric “unlock” button to dispense hot water.
Auto shut-off, which turns off the machine when there is no water in the inner container
Removable magnetic power cord which easily detaches from the machine when snagged to prevent the unit from toppling
In-spout and in-lid spill protection
The drawbacks of a Zojirushi hot water dispenser
While the Zojirushi has a lot going for it, it also has a few disadvantages. First, the price: these hot water dispensers tend to be way more expensive than their competition. If all you want is hot water, then there are much cheaper options available.
Secondly, Zojirushi coats the interior of it’s pots with a non-stick coating. Firstly, why do I need a non-stick coating for water?! And while they claim that all parts that come into contact with warm water are BPA-free, all types of coatings are plastic. BPA is just one in a long line of harmful plastic chemicals that react with hot water to leech into your food. To me this is actually why I personally don’t want to buy a Zojirushi, it really freaks me out that leaking plastic can mess with your endocrine system. I prefer to buy a hot water pot that has no coating on its stainless steel interior. I’m still doing research on the best one, as a lot of companies do not disclose this kind of information.
Neverthless, you may not care and that’s totally okay!
Overall, Zojirushi is a great buy for you if:
You love tea
Only the best will do
You want a sleek looking hot water dispenser
You want to buy from a reputable brand
You already drink from plastic water bottles, have Teflon non-stick pots and pans, eat dairy in plastic tubs and your skincare products all have so what’s a little more chemicals in your food?
